Sound distributor



S. H. BARCLAY SOUND DISTRIBUTOR Filed June 15, 1944 Oct. 30, 1945.

' INVENTOR.

Patented Oct. 30, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SOUND DISTRIBUTOR Spencer H. Barclay, Arlington, N. J.

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a device for distributing sound such as speech and music by means of a rotating tapered part that is arranged to receive sound in its open end and then by reason of its construction and its rotation to send the sound in all directions to all parts in the vicinity in equal volume.

The most frequent use of the device is in conjunction with juke boxes and similar devices and it is wired in a manner to utilize the current that operates the disc from which the sound is transmitted to also rotate the distributor. This leaves the distributor at rest unless the sound reproducing mechanism is operating.

The distributor is ornamental and is usually faced with reflecting material such as small mirrors or metal plates and these may be colored in order to give rotating color changes while the music plays Or other sounds are produced. The use of the device is particularly adapted for dance halls, taverns and like establishments.

The invention also relates to an operating mechanism that starts and stops the rotation of the distributor without strain on the mechanism, this being due to the resiliency resident in the propelling means coupled with a flexible suspending means that allows for a limited take-up of the torque that is present in the starting and ending of the rotation, as when it is used in conjunction with the playing of records. This construction provides a silent starting and stopping of the device and thus no noises are produced to interfere with the clear reproduction coming from the record.

The invention also relates to certain details of construction that are more fully described hereinafter and also embodied in some of the claims.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a side View, partly in section, of a device embodying the invention. Figure 2 is a sectional top view of a major portion of the device shown in Figure 1, taken approximately at the bottom of the sounding board.

The device comprises a suspended support to house the reproduc'er and from which is suspended a tapered hollow distributor that is rotated by means of an electric motor attached to the support and which distributor receives sound from the reproducer and distributes it through its walls and out of a circular opening between its rim and the outer edge of the sounding board of the support.

The support is shown at H! and is usually a circular thin piece of wood with an opening H in Application June 13, 1944, Serial No. 540,116

the center. The support also includes a housing or dome I2 secured to the aforesaid sounding board or plate l0 and having a supporting eye l3 at the'top. The eye is secured to the bottom of a flexible support or strand l4 which is suspended from an eye l5 in an elevated part such as a ceiling. The strand l4 provides for a limited turning movement of the device which has an advantage which is described hereinafter.

The support also includes a bracket which is provided with radially extending arms which bracket usually comprises crossed metal strips 16 fastened together at the center and having the central part ll depressed to provide a space for a motor and having the ends of the arms slotted at l8. Bolts l9 fit into the slots and extend through the plate I!) and are provided with nuts 20 on' the top of'the plate. This construction enables the bracket to be adjusted, which in turn insures that the distributor, which is supported under the bracket, rotates on a vertical axis.

The distributor is tapered and. preferably coneshaped and is suspended from the bracket by means of a stud 2| which is held in place by a nut 22. The stud is enlarged below the bracket,

to provide a bearing 23 for the balls 24 and on which rotates the sleeve 25 of the inner central hub 26 of the distributor. The bearing is freely operable and is silent, the ordinary bicycle pedal bearing having been found well adapted for the purpose. The. distributor comprises a tapered wall 21 from the bottom of which extends the hub 26 and which rotates freely and silently when operated. The upper open end of the distributor preferably extends beyond, and has its outer upper rim 28 spaced from the outer rim of the plate Ill. The wall 21 when made of a mixture of materials and provided with spaced holes 29 has been found to be excellent for sound distribution. A mixture of plaster, cork, jute with a coating of shellac has been found very satisfactory.

The hub 26 is provided with a pulley 30. An electric motor 3| is secured to the bracket to one side of the center and is provided with a pulley 32. A belt 33 passes around these pulleys and rotates the distributor when the motor operates. The wires 34 from the motor and the wires 35 from the reproducer 36 are in circuits that cause the current to energize the motor only when the speaker or reproducer is in circuit. The wires may be passed up out of sight inside the cover 31 of the strand M.

The reproducer 36 may be of any desired or convenient type such as, for example, the reprodistributor is rotated} The dome I2 is also usually faced with the small mirrors or reflectors 39.

These ornamental mirrors are especially effective when a colored spot light of the vari-coloredy rotating kind is placed in circuit with the motor and illuminates the device when itis rotatingand the music is playing.

The distributor has been found efiective, as in-a closed chamber the volume and clarity and character of the sounds coming from the device are the same in all parts of the room. They are no stronger when hearddirectly under the speaker than at the side walls of the room. The nonvibratorycharacter of the Walls of the distributor accounts for some of the mellowness and distribution of sound and the-volumes emerging in proportion from the largeannularspace at the top-of thedistributor and that coming from the perforations 29 bothseem to contribute'to the extremely satisfactory results. Theenjoyment of the music atall parts of the room mm contrast to the bilare that comes from the front of the usual directional loud speakerand'the unsatisfactory results in other parts of the room if the volume is' reduced to eliminate the blare. With this new device, as herein described, the volume is practically the same in all parts of the chamber and need notbe increased to carry the sound in adequate volume to remote corners or at thewalls. 'The use of the distributor in dance places and taverns lends an ornamental andxpleasant sight for the patrons and it is usually suspended .from the ceiling in .a position to be an added attraction to the place. Whenthe music plays the rotation of the distributor lends :color and animation to the production.

Another advantage of the construction of the device is that there is aminimumof strain on the parts when stopping andlstarting the rotation of the distributor. .When the current is applied to the motor while the record is initially rotating for the first .fewcircles of blank groove, the motor 31- and fits pulley 32 start up :and the application of power to the pulley 3:41 causes an initial'rotation of the distributor. .At the same time the oricenter position of'the motor'causes aslight rotary movement in the opposite direction which is taken up by the dome l2 and the flexible strand I 4. The continued rotation of the distributor eases the strain on the motor and the dome returns to its initial position.

When the rendition is finished and the current shut ofi, the momentum of the distributor acts sound reproducer in said dome opening downwardly therein, a sounding board fixed to the lower end of said dome and having a medial aperture iii-registry with said reproducer, a distributor comprising a generally hollow, unitary member of tapered outline having a plurality of apertures therein, a bracket having a plurality of arms, means connected to said bracket and distributor torotatably-su'spend the latter from the former with the outer upper rim of said distributor spaced from andextendingabovethe planeof the sounding board, means engaging said bracket and said board to enable the arms to be selectively spaced from the board at such position as isrequired to center the distributor thereon, and means in said device engaging "the distributor to rotate the latter.

2. In a sound distributing device, a unitary dome, a sound reproducer in said dome opening downwardly therein, a sounding board fixed to the lower end of said domeand having a medial aperture in registry with said reproducer, 'a distributor comprising a generally hollow, unitary member, a bracket having a plurality of arms, means connected to said bracket and distributor to rotatably suspend the latter from the former, means engaging said bracket and said "board to enable the arms to be -selectively spaced from the board at such position as is required to center the distributor thereon, motor means in said device and pulley means engaging the distributor and motor to rotate the distributor on actuation of the motor.

'3. In a sound distributing 'device, a dome, a sound reproducer in said dome opening downwardlytherein, a sounding board fixed to the lowerend of said dome and having a'medial aperture in registry'with said reproducer, a distrib- .utor'comprising agenerally hollow, unitary member, a bracket having a plurality of "arms, means connected to said'bracket and distributor to rotatably suspend the latter from the former, means engaging said bracket and said board to enable the armsto be selectively spaced from the board at such position as is required to center the distributor thereon, and light reflectors "fixed to and coveringthe outer surfaces of the distributor.

SPENCER 'H. BARCLAY.

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